Amari Alexander Gawanab - Born Aug. 21, 2013

Baby Amari is finally here...born August 21st, 2013. I haven't had time to do much, especially write my blogs. However, it's ok. Amari is the love of my life. You don't realize how much you can love someone until you have a child. Being a new mother in the music industry is not easy. I knew that this would be the case. I knew that making music would slow down, but I didn't know how slow. Babies need a lot from you. They teach you to take your time, and enjoy the moments.

Newborns are "new" for only so long. They grow up so fast and the time is fleeting. I look at him and think, I don't want to miss a second with you. He is my number one.

My career is still important, and I will do what I can when I can. My music career is life long, but my baby will only be a baby once.

The Importance of Being Active While Pregnant

I can't let pregnancy slow me down! Time is of the essence!

We all know that being active during pregnancy for the reasons of health, healthy weight gain, and a healthy baby is important. However, it is also extremely important to remain active so that you have the energy to work! As a recording artist, I am self employed and therefore, need to be disciplined, not only with my time, but also with my energy. I don't work 9-5; I work all day long, and I need that energy to sustain my career. I know many other mothers to be, who are not self employed, who also need to be energized because they work 9-5, and have other kids at home. Rest is crucial, but so is exercise. Some women feel that being pregnant is a free pass to be lazy, and eat junk. It is nice to indulge in those things, however, this is not a lifestyle you want to continue for the whole 9 months.

It is important to keep your ambitions and passions alive, which take energy. Several women I feel lose themselves, and that can be unhealthy, and sometimes lead to postpartum depression. Of course there are other factors that can lead to this as well, but feeling good and keeping active is a huge component in how you will cope after the baby arrives.

As the months role along, and you get bigger, you have to adjust your workout. Women don't realize how effective a simple hour of walking a day, at a good pace, can be. I like to do my squats when I walk my dog. Every time Tonto stops to pee or sniff, I am squatting. I also practice yoga once a week which helps keep me focused, strong and limber. I am about to give birth any day now and will be recording a new song in the next few days, if I am not in labour. I feel motivated to keep working; yes because I love what I do, but because I still have the energy to do so. I also believe that this will help when the baby arrives, as I will continue writing and recording, and hopefully putting on a few gigs here and there.

I looooooooove sweets, and so I have no choice but to work out. If I got too big, I wouldn't want to go anywhere. It would be too painful to walk or even get up. Not to mention, I would feel miserable. I like that I can still go for a night out with my friends and family. I was dancing away and doing the limbo, only a few days ago. I feel strong, and it is all thanks to not giving into my pregnancy, and staying active.

Balance is the key...so stay fit, rest, work and have fun!

NHD and HunnyB - Engaged in Paris! My Story...

Now that you all know I am engaged to the genius producer NHD, I thought I would share the story of how he proposed.

Our first date was in Paris, and it was an amazing experience. I just fell in love with this romantic city. Everything was exquisite, from the cappuccino and croissants, the shopping in Champs-Elysees, to partying with Ne-Yo and The Dream at an exclusive VIP event.

NHD knew that I loved Paris, and decided to take me back there to celebrate our anniversary, and of course ask me to marry him. I don't want to make the story too long so I will be brief in my descriptions.

The first day in Paris was a very relaxing day, since I was jet lagged, as he had whisked me off only an hour after I arrived in England. It was a surprise, going to Paris. I had no idea where he was taking me. Our second evening in Paris, NHD had made reservations for dinner, and we had to be ready for 7pm sharp or we would lose our reservation. I started to get myself ready early, as it takes me a while. I was done too early, so I decided to chill, and not get dressed right away. NHD asked me when I was planning on getting dressed, and I replied, "Soon, but just not now." He then asked if I'd get dressed with at least with 15 minutes to spare. I thought, "What is this man up too?", but I shook my head and agreed. Once I got dressed, he motioned me to the bed, (no it's not what you think), and turned on the television. He started to play a video he created, which began with a love story. Before I could even bat an eye, I realized the story was about him and me. He had pictures from my childhood, of my birth, and of my life growing up. It was the story of how we met, and how our lives intertwined in the best possible way. I cried!

The video ended up cutting off on us, but we had to leave for the restaurant, so we rushed out, met our driver and off we went. NHD escorted me to a boat on the Seine River, to a table that was right at the front, where you could look out and see the magical lights of Paris, including the Eiffel Tower. The table was gorgeous with a bottle of champagne, chilling, and just waiting to be uncorked.

During dinner, NHD started talking about Love, and questioning how one knows they are truly in love. He started this speech, which I interrupted as I had to use the toilette. When I sat back down at the table, NHD continued where he left off like nothing had happened. All of a sudden I heard him say, "I promise to take care of you, and I promise to take care of Tonto (my dog), and then he got down on his knee. I thought "No, no, no, no, no, this can't be happening." Not because I didn't want to marry the guy, but because I was shocked, and it was in front of a lot of people. I even said, "No, no, no, no, no," out loud with my hands over my eyes, before I said "Yes!" I didn't see NHD open the box with the ring, nor the ring...I was crying so hard, and saying "No!" Finally, after what he says felt like 5 minutes, he asked me if I was going to answer him. I looked up with my tear stained face and said, "Yes, Yes, yes..I will marry you." Then the entire boat erupted in applause! How embarrassing! He slipped the ring on my finger, and it was massive. It pretty much it took up my whole finger. I was speechless.

When we got back to the hotel, NHD took me to a different floor. I was thinking, "Oh no, not another surprise." But yes, of course it was another surprise. He had all of our bags moved, secretly, to a larger suite that was decorated in rose petals, and boasted two more bottles of champagne. Now that I think about it, he might have been unsure I would say yes, hence all the champagne.

Then we watched the last bit of the video, which was of NHD asking my parents, his parents, and my grandparents, for my hand in marriage. This was the last straw..I was a mess like melted butter. He did good! Real good!

I do have to say however, that I did give him back the ring to propose again, in the hotel room, as I was so emotional on the boat, that I couldn't take it all in. I wanted to savor the moment of seeing my man on his knee.

This was the beginning of my new life with NHD. Then we made a baby:)

That's part 2!

Appearing single in the music industry when you're not!

How important is it for a female artist to keep hush, hush about her relationships? Music industry professionals are always saying that it is better to appear single. I understand this, but I think if you're hot, men and women are going to fantasize about you anyway. Whenever I've told someone I was in a relationship, they didn't care anyway, and still persisted to ask me out. I had a "rep" from Def Jam say some pretty, sexually nasty things to me to try and persuade me to leave my man. So does appearing single help you to elicit more attention? I don't know! In all honesty, I struggled with this predicament for a while. I mean, my relationships are a huge part of my life. As an artist we should be able to freely express ourselves through our lives, especially our relationships. My fans listen to my music and wonder, who is HunnyB talking about? Which dude cheated on her, and which dude makes her happy? I have known my music producer for a long while now, 11 years to be exact, and a couple years ago we became serious. In time we fell in love. Now he is the father of our soon to be first baby. For a year, we never once announced that we were together, as we thought it would be better if I appeared to be single. When we went to events, he was my producer and nothing more. Eventually, I got tired of this game. We are a mean ass team in music, and in life...I wanted to share both. Many of my songs were inspired by him, and still are. I wanted my audience to know who I was talking about. Rita Ora was dating Rob Kardashian for a while. It was all good until it started to get more serious, so Rita had to pull the plug, or so she thought. She wanted to keep Rob under wraps to appear available. Was this her idea? Maybe! However, Roc Nation probably had a lot to say about this as well. In my opinion, Rob Kardashian is a huge public figure, and if anything, this relationship would have garnered great publicity. I am not in my relationship with NHD for publicity, however I am proud to say that I have found love, and someone to support me in this fight to make it! He still allows me to be sexy, and be me. If you as my fans are going to like me, you have to know me. Well, here it is...HunnyB is in love, and getting married in 2014. My next blog will be about how he proposed, so watch out for that;) NHD and HunnyB all the way baby! This dream team that will make the world scream!

Why making the video for "The Unknown" was special!

I currently have had the blessed opportunity to release 2 music videos thus far. The first was for my single "Jack," and the second was for my single "The Unknown." "The Unknown" was the very first single I ever released professionally, and therefore, this music video meant so much more to me. Making the decision to pursue a career as a recording artist changed my life. I already was a professional entertainer, performing in musicals all over the country, as well as having a lot of experience as a television actress. However, I felt like something was missing. I wasn't able to creatively express myself the way I wanted to, but when I wrote music, it was like I could finally breathe. I recall sitting off set on the production of Suits, listening to this beat that was so generously given to me by music producer Terence Lam. The instrumental was absolutely beautiful and touching. As I was listening to this beat, I was trying to find some kind of inspiration, so I turned to my actor friend, Steve Bewley, and asked, "When you listen to this beat, what comes to mind?" He said, "Not knowing what life is going to bring you in the future..the unknown." Joey Graham and I had just split, and I was a mess. Then I thought, yes this is what I need to write about, and the words came pouring out. It was extremely therapeutic, and I completed the song in 20 minutes. Releasing this track on iTunes was such a powerful experience for me, because it meant the beginning of something special. I was nervous sharing my work, and my vulnerable self to the world, but it was freeing as well. I knew the video for "The Unknown" had to be made. I asked Steve Bewley to be my leading man in the music video, as it was only fitting that he play that role. The team I had to shoot this piece of art was amazing. My vision for the video couldn't have turned out any better. Thank you to the Cole family, Rohit Thakur, Sylvia Zuk, Zayne Gawanab, Steve Bewley, Sadita Graham, Kenya Henry, Jeff Mcculloch, Terence lam and Marcel Jones. "The Unknown" is on Itunes at: https://itunes.apple.com/ca/album/the-unknown-single/id480349061

You can also watch the video here: Just copy and paste the link... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OgiV5vhO2lI

Self Made!

Last night I went to the Macklemore and Ryan Lewis concert. They are amazing! I love Macklemore! Why? Macklemore is a self made artist and that to me is extremely inspirational. Macklemore is not ashamed to admit that he struggled desperately with drugs, and alcohol. He is not ashamed to admit that, until he was clean, he couldn't write the music he so passionately wanted to write. When Macklemore was 25, he moved back into his parent's basement. This was his new beginning. He was clean, humble, and ready to work. He teamed up with Ryan Lewis, who also lived at home, and together they created music that was honest, catchy, brave, and entertaining. Macklemore is self made! He had the chance to sign with a big label once his notoriety started to climb, but he opted to stay independent. He knew that he could do it, and would reap the rewards he deserved. Instead of giving himself over to a label, and making only 12 cents on anything he sold, he now has full control, and gets to keep his earnings. I know how hard it is to be independent. You really have to believe in yourself as you are your own investor. You need to know how to brand, and market yourself, which takes time. However, with social media these days, if you put in the time, money, and effort, you can have a shot at something huge. I have had several meetings with big time managers, and A&Rs, and sometimes I think to myself, do you even know what you are doing? I don't know what the future has in store for me, but the way I see it is, if I don't invest in myself, who else will. I will keep doing what I do best; making and performing music. I know I am on my way! Hopefully, bit by bit, I will catch on to more and more people, and I will be able to say, "YES, I AM SELF MADE!"

Losing the Baby Weight Fast!

One of the biggest concerns, in my opinion, for a performer in the public eye when getting pregnant, is losing the baby weight quickly. The entertainment world can be extremely superficial, which brings fear to women who are in this particular world. When it comes to booking a gig, or a magazine spread, or any type of publicity, appearance becomes a huge factor. I will be getting back to work as soon as possible after the birth of my precious baby, and the pressure to lose baby weight fast is real. I want to look as much the pop star as I can when I am on stage. However, I am realistic, and I know that this takes time. I will have to learn to embrace my post-baby body, work hard to get to where I want to be, and more importantly, where my body wants to be. I will stay focused, not get down on myself, and know that anything is possible, even with a few extra pounds. My talent does not change due to the fact that my belly may sag, or my breasts are not as perky. In time, these things will change; it's just about getting through it with a positive mind set. I can still sing the heck out of anything, even with a little extra bulge here, and there. I will still be able to rock an outfit, and make love to the camera. Life is too short to worry about the superficial. The music industry should embrace new mothers, supporting them through the changes that they face. Before I became pregnant, I was so critical, and self conscious about my body, however, being pregnant has made me realise how fortunate I was to have had the body I had pre pregnancy. I look back at pictures, and think, "Wow, what was I honestly worried about?" I can only dream to get that same body back quickly. Mentally this will be a struggle. Getting back to work, going to meetings, doing photo shoots, and performances will be difficult if I am down on my appearance, but I will have a beautiful little baby, and that to me will shine through me more than any glitter or flat tummy would. The pressure is there, but I will wear the baby weight well, and it will come off when it comes off. I will work very hard to be fierce and fit again. I intend to bring a whole new sexy to the world, and to HunnyB.

VEVO...I'm Important Too!

The problem with being an independent artist is that you don't have the clout to have people care enough to get your stuff done right away, even if you pay them. I use to have a Vevo account, which had thousands of views by the way, which was great, however, on the account my name was spelled incorrectly. I asked Vevo to fix this several times and they never did. In actuality, I asked the company I pay to sort out my Vevo, and have Vevo fix this for me, and NOTHING! So I had no choice but to cancel my account, and start again, because they weren't able to fix my name unless I started a whole new profile. I swear this is bull! I had thousands of views taken away because of them. If I were Beyonce or Pink, you better believe they would fix everything and anything I needed fixing in just 2 seconds. Anyway, I had the company terminate my old profile, and create me a new one. It took approximately 2 weeks to get my videos up and running...not bad. My name, "HunnyB," is even spelled right. The problem now, is that Vevo hasn't put up my profile picture, or any of my links. When you search for me, you find HunnyB, but what does she look like? I swear, this is so ghetto. I was hoping I could start promoting my new Vevo account to build back my views, but I can't even do that because I am too embarrassed to show off my ghetto Vevo page. Aaaaagggghhhhh....This is so frustrating. It has been one month, and I am still without a picture and link-less. Really? I mean we are all artists who work equally as hard, shouldn't we be afforded the same respect. I emailed the company today who deals with my Vevo account, and I am hoping they can sort this issue out sooner than later. If only I had the name Rihanna, or had Warner Bros. on my side. One day I will, and never again will HunnyB have to wait for a profile picture, or have her name spelled wrong! Mark my words! http://www.vevo.com/watch/hunnyb/jack-official-video/QMGR31301030